Headlights on Dark Roads
by sreedman
Summary: What happens when you're a half-breed on the run from the Volturi for 40 years? Nessie needs to uncover the truth about her family before it's too late. Re-write of 'degrees of separation' Post BD/canon couples/M for language & maybe future lemons
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys!**

**For those of you who were reading my other stories, first I apologize for leaving you hanging for so long. They say that life is what happens when you're making other plans and that couldn't be truer. Over the past year I worked hard and earned a full scholarship to university so I hope that you won't be too angry! Second, I want to thank you for coming back to me and my stories!**

THIS IS A RE-WRITE OF DEGREES OF SEPARATION

I decided over the past 6 months that although I absolutely loved the general direction of the story, initially I hadn't written it too well, so I'm staring again. I think this version is much better and I hope you agree.

A/N: If I include song lyrics in this fic at the top of any of the chapters, you should at least take your time to skim through them. Usually they will give you some insight as to how the characters are feeling when it isn't so clear in the chapter itself.

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns the Twilight universe; I just get to play with her characters :) I do not own any of the lyrics that I post and I do not intend to infringe any copyright.

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**CHAPTER ONE: PROLOGUE**

Trying not to lose my head  
But I have never been this scared before  
Tell you what I'll do instead  
Lay my body down on the floor  
To forget what I've done  
Silhouette 'til the good lord come

All we know is distance  
We're close and then we run  
Kiss away the difference  
I know you hate this one

Trying not to lose your own  
Boxing up everything, you've got  
All you ever knew of home  
You're scared, scared to see  
Your mother there in the door  
You wonder where did the years go

All we know is distance  
We're close and then we run  
Kiss away the difference  
I know you hate this one

But this is how the story ends  
Or have we just begun  
To kiss away the difference?  
I know you hate this one

_Where the Story Ends – The Fray_


	2. Chapter 2

**G'day!**

**Now the real fun begins. You'll notice that this story is very different to degrees of separation, but fear not because the plot is still sort of the same.**

Somewhere I know that I'm not all alone  
This painted breath I hone  
My lungs want to explode

This cant be the real world now  
I don't believe it  
When I cant see the truth

_Real World – All American Rejects_

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**CHAPTER TWO: Renesmee POV**

The clerk at the check in counter huffed in impatience as he scanned my false identification documents. This was probably one of the only times he had processed a manual passport. I knew for a fact that transportation-teleportation devices had been developed and perfected, but the authorities had the technology under lock and key; they represented a severe security risk.

The name on my procured birth certificate was Rebecca Janelle Hastings. Of course that isn't my real name, or even my first faux identity. My real name is a mystery in itself. I am known to the Volturi and consequently the CIA, as experiment 4 and I am a wanted woman, on a universal scale.

Evading the authorities had been infinitely difficult for the first 30 years after my escape from the Volturi compound. The head vampire trio; Aro, Caius and Marcus had no choice but to collaborate with a select few human authorities so that technology could be developed to track me down. Only five members of the Central Intelligence Agency knew the true nature of the Italians; part of the trade-off was absolute secrecy. The two organisations now traded intelligence and there is no doubt that the world is a safer place because of it. Well, from human threats anyway.

The standard for personal ID in the year of 2018 became nano-circuitry embedded into the subcutaneous layer of tissue in the forearm. It contained passport details, bank accounts, medical records, everything. The Volturi suggested that the process become compulsory so that everyone could be tracked and that identity fraud was next to impossible. Slowly, over the next 30 years, each person on the planet was essentially tagged and monitored by the international police. There was public backlash, but overall the system was found to be efficient and effective. Physical identity documents and currency became redundant and the world moved at a faster pace than ever before.

The ulterior motive, unknown to the CIA, was to force the Vampires off the map and into secrecy where they "so rightly belonged". The Volturi detested the fact that there were immortals living amongst the humans so easily, going to school with them, working with them, and I use the term loosely, living with them. Their skin of course, could not be tattooed with the nano-silicon and they could therefore not apply for any accounts, register for school or work in an office. My skin, being a half-Vampire, was almost as impenetrable and I was shunned to the shadows, unable to blend with the general population and hide amongst the crowds; to the delight of the Volturi, I was like a walking target.

In 2049, the system came to a screeching halt. The humans realised that technology is in fact fallible, after a massive and catastrophic failure. There was public uproar and a massive revolt, forcing the authorities to allow people to carry physical cash and identity documents to ensure a manual back-up. Of course, most of the population still continued to use the computerized documents but it meant that people like myself could get away with fraud and avoid detection by hiding in plain sight.

I am currently standing in Heathrow airport, checking into a flight to Anchorage, Alaska. It is the year 2058. I've been on the run for 40 years and have only finally managed to destroy my Vampire tracker, Demetri. Being a half-Vampire, I had to work with my advantages in the humanity department. Surprising a Vampire is difficult, unless you have humans you can trust.

I have the one of the best _and_ one of the world's most retarded Vampire gifts. I discovered after my escape that I have a tracking ability; not very powerful, but strong enough to know which direction to run if I am being followed. My other ability is lame, but useful, I can project my thoughts and feelings to others. After vigorous Volturi training, I can project several miles without contact and can trick the subject into believing that the thoughts are their own.

The clerk continued to huff, so I decided to cheat a little bit. My gift was stronger with physical contact, so I gently grasped his forearm.

"Hey what are you-" he cried, before my consciousness invaded his. "I'm sorry Ms Hastings, I apologize sincerely for the delay. I'll have your passport ready in just a few seconds… There, done," he smiled and I winked and removed my hand.

Loaded with my passport and carry-on, containing a small communication device; much like the antiquated cell phones of my relative youth, a completely technologically redundant piece of "dead tree", otherwise known as a printed novel on actual paper, some tampons, a tarnished silver bracelet carrying a small wooden wolf charm and an enormous diamond heart pendant, a change of clothes, several thousand dollars in untraceable cash stashed inside an old leather wallet, a few other forged particulars, a laminated photograph and an old button.

The phone was a necessity as public phones were no longer available. I only had one person that I could call anyway, and god only knows where that son of a bitch was right now; I'd contact him later. The book was a treasured possession; I didn't care for the e-readers that most people carried. Something about reading printed literature was so much more satisfying, especially when it was second or third hand. I liked to imagine the previous owners curled up in front of the hearth on a sofa, the tongues of the flames licking at their feet. It made me feel like I had more of a home.

The tampons were a motherfucking necessity. If I had to suffer menstruation for the rest of my hopefully (or unfortunately) eternal lifespan, I would throw a shitting hissy fit. Some elements of my body could change, like my reproductive system; which is a bitch, considering the fact that sometimes it takes a little more than verbal or psychological coercion to gain the trust of certain humans. I am no Virgin Mary by any stretch; something that I am not necessarily proud of.

The bracelet was an unknown entity. That thing was one of the only personal articles that I had with me at the time of my imprisonment, along with the old button, and I could only assume that it was given to me by my original family.

Now that I was relatively safe, I could begin the task of gathering intelligence on my origins. I was headed first to Alaska to investigate rumours that a coven was once situated there that had contact with my family. Almost all of the Vampires who were in the loop at the time of my birth were sought out and killed by the Volturi to ensure that I could not ever contact those who knew of my heritage. I could only hope that my family were not among those slaughtered. Those who were not killed were forced deep into hiding. A few times I had managed to locate them, but they would not speak a word for fear of punishment.

If only I could remember my days before my capture. The Volturi performed numerous experiments on myself and the other half breeds; Nahuel and the Danish twins, Elin and Cathrine; to test our physical and psychological limits. Our memories were wiped by a new Vampire with a sinister gift and as such I cannot recall my childhood, my real name, my housing or the way that I lived before I was thrust into a dark world of torture and cruelty. I was told nothing by the guards about my parents except for the fact that they were unnatural; living off the blood of animals.

After that day, I refused to drink from humans.

The other three half-breeds were exterminated. I managed to escape, but not without one final experiment. I was given invitro-fertilisation treatment using Nahuel's sperm and became pregnant. The photo I stow in my carry-on is that of my daughter.

***

**Hope you liked it! Love Sarah**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey Everyone!**

**Still setting up the background story… this chapter will be a little longer and maybe explain a few things. If you want to read an almost complete, epic tale of awesomeness, check out "Hands on Me" by IndependenceIndividuality.**

I can't make my own decisions  
Or make any with precision  
Well maybe you should tie me up  
So i don't go where you don't want me  
You say that I've been changing  
That I'm not just simply Ageing  
Well how could that be logical?  
Just keep on cramming ideas down my throat

_Playing God - Paramore_

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns everything Twilight :)

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**CHAPTER THREE: Renesmee POV**

Most people would say that there's a special place in hell for some of the things that I had done. I didn't believe there was an afterlife at all, which left me a whole sackful of regrets to shoulder for eternity. Life has this way of chewing you up; breaking you down and then unceremoniously spitting you out again. I had murdered innocents for their blood when I was just a child myself. If that wasn't a one-way ticket to proverbial purgatory, then my other transgressions really had me screwed.

I was no psychic, so picking a winning lottery ticket or investing in the right stocks was an exercise in complete failure. I had to covet, steal, sell black market goods; especially drugs, provide 'adult' services and perform risky back-door operations such as intelligence gathering for filthy, filthy rich gang lords to make a living. Money was often hard to come by in those first three decades, but I had since been able to work sporadically under false identities and earn untainted cash. I had to try, for her.

My daughter was absolutely everything to me in the world, heck, the entire universe. She was lucky, in that the Volturi assumed that the pregnancy was a failed experiment. Nobody who had connections to the Vampire world knew of her existence; a Halfling bred by Halflings. If they did, she would be the hot target for bounty hunters the world over, and I'd really be damned if I let that become a remote possibility. We spoke sporadically; it was difficult to arrange meetings when you operated through a convoluted system of fake e-mail accounts and cold paper trails.

The last time we spoke was about three years ago in Rio de Janeiro. At the time, she was enrolled in the Stamford School of Medicine; about to graduate as a doctor. She had Nahuel's rich and silky black hair that fell in looser curls than my own, with perfect mocha skin. Her eyes were an unusual shade of green; I can't imagine how. If not for our completely opposite colourings and the lively innocent spark in her expression, we might just pass for twins. We could both easily be anywhere between 18 and 25, fortunately possessing an ageless charisma that made creating multiple identities far too easy.

I had tried to contact her 10 weeks ago, expecting a reply within about a month, but heard nothing. I had become a little sidetracked by the Demetri component of my life, so put the issue on the back burner for future agonising over her whereabouts. Unfortunately, now that I only had oodles of time, that time was taken up by shitting myself with worry. Finding her had become another target on my current mission, and now that I could undertake activities with a little more risk, I was confident that we would be reunited.

The stewardess passing by my seat interrupted my internal monologue, "Can I get you anything to drink Ms. Hastings?" she asked, sporting a fake smile, fake breasts and a healthy dose of fake enthusiasm.

"No thanks," I replied a little too obviously, hoping that she might be offended and leave me alone. Unfortunately, she was a little too dense to pick up on the malice.

"Are you sure hon? We have some coffee, tea, juice, coke-" she trailed off, whilst I imagined how small her brain would be if I decided to do an impromptu surgery or what scandalous tattoos she hid under her too-tight attendants uniform, emblazoned with the name "Lauren".

A curt voice spoke from beside me "She _said_ no." I wasn't used to having my battles fought for me, but this time I was intrigued. Now that I could interact with general members of the public who were not involved in crime, the sex industry or were not generally seedy, I took every opportunity I could get to analyse the psyche of the human mind. I was weird like that.

Lauren snorted, apparently a little miffed, and sauntered forward to the next row of passengers. I turned to the mystery man on my left, to investigate the source of the voice. Of course, I could have been covert about it; with training I had learnt to move just as fast as my full-Vampire counterparts, but something about this situation made me perfectly content to act like a human for once.

I was met with a man of about 21, his icy blue eyes trained onto my face. He was wearing a typical business suit and a red satin necktie, by the looks of which were probably moderately expensive. Like most people, he carried a small handheld device on his wrist, powered by the oxygen in his blood, which could access the circuitry in his arm. The way in which he had his small briefcase organised suggested to me that he was either anally neat or had something to hide; and I was going with the latter.

I decided to probe a little further. "I'm Janelle," I offered a hand, knowing that my warm touch was usually a calming influence. I used my middle name; I wasn't taking chances with a stranger on a plane, especially one hooked up to the 'network'.

He took my hand for a moment and I squeezed back politely. He was running a cool, a little clammy, although he wasn't sweating profusely and didn't smell too nervous. That was generally a good sign. "Um Brad," he hesitated, and I thought that maybe I wasn't the only one dishing out false information. From just 20 seconds of his presence I had witnessed enough about his demeanour to identify with that of my own, in the past when I was a little less clinical and a lot more paranoid… not that my paranoia had necessarily subsided.

Maybe he was running, just like me. I wish I could know what _from_ or perhaps what _to_. What I wouldn't give to be a mind-reader.

"So, you look like you're heading to Alaska on Business. Do you work for an American company?" I hedged.

"Yeah, I'm from the US," he spoke a little guardedly, "I was just in the UK for a bit of a social call but the real world calls again. Work can't wait forever you know?" he joked.

"I know what you mean," I answered after glancing at the time on his wrist, realising that I probably wasn't going to get much out of this guy in the hour we had left of the flight. I wondered why he had bothered to intercede in the first place, when now he had begun to type out commands and repositioned his earpiece to listen to music.

I left 'Brad' to his own devices, instead sifting through the channels on the in-flight entertainment. I studied the news with a little more interest now that I was re-integrating back into the world and noted that there had been a bomb threat at the Los Angeles airport, prompting a security hike. Check in and customs was going to be a bitch. I settled for a crappy romantic comedy movie; the plot was so clichéd that I could re-create it almost perfectly using 10 second fragments of past films I had seen.

Someone stirred a few rows behind me, sending whorls of their scent towards me. The tangy, yet floral odour sparked an inferno in my throat, the tongues of the flames licking dangerously towards my mouth. I swallowed convulsively; trying to quell the urge to taste the dangerously delicious blood and inconspicuously covered my mouth and nose with my forearm. It had been far too long since my last hunt, I had been living for weeks on wretched human food only. I found that my control was especially bad after so long as my human side tended to be impatient, impulsive and one-tracked. Whereas a Vampire my age could generally think of many things at once, I tended to involuntarily tune out most other things to focus on the intense thirst.

The captain announced that the flight would land in approximately five minutes, and I breathed a sigh of relief in tandem with a fresh breeze from the overhead air conditioner. Life was complicated enough without blood on my hands, and I wasn't going back to those days, at least not right now.

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**Hope that you're satisfied for a few more days :) I'm so, so, so sorry if you're annoyed by any of the spellings that I use (ie Australians spell –ize words with –ise and I sometimes use colloquialisms that non-Aussies might not get). If there is ever a word, phrase or spelling that you're uncomfortable with, leave it in a review and I'll reply back with an explanation. Love Sarah**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey all!**

**Sorry about the dry spell… I just started university and I am on my mid-semester break so I have more time to update. Hopefully over the next week I'll have a few more chapters up. This story will be a slow update thing, but just remember to hang on because I am definitely going to finish!**

**REMEMBER TO ALWAYS READ THE LYRICS :)**

I wish somebody would build a bridge  
So I could get over myself  
On my own I'm wasting my time

_I Wish Somebody Would Build a Bridge – Thirsty Merc_

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns all things Twilight including a new novella about Bree! Go check it out!

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**CHAPTER FOUR: Renesmee POV**

As predicted, getting through customs was a bitch and I found myself wasting time playing childish games with the general airport population. It was a little shady, I admit, but using my gift to turn fighters into lovers or complete strangers to friends was at least little higher up on the scale of righteousness than convincing them to drive off a cliff, so I deemed it an acceptable pass-time.

As the 5pm rush rolled in, the crowds only increased and I found myself holding my breath for extended periods; especially for a different reason as I was practically forced into full body contact with a old traveller that smelt of blue cheese and urine. Delicious.

I finally managed to get through processing, letting out a sigh of extreme relief as I did so. The sliding doors opened as I walked towards them; not a surprising event whatsoever, but I couldn't help comparing it in my minds eye with some religious figure opening the gates to a proverbial heaven as I stepped through. I let out a half-snort half-repressed-maniacal laugh and shook my head. Anchorage Alaska as viewed from the Ted Stevens Anchorage International terminal was as close to 'heaven' as I'd felt in the past 40 years, but it was a far cry from where I really wanted to be.

The country was now serviced extraordinarily well by a mag-lev rail system with interconnecting light rail terminals and other public transport. I was headed to the small town of South McKinley; named aptly for its position in relation to Mt McKinley-Denali, the centrepiece of the Denali National Park. It would take me less than an hour to get there by rail, so I took a deep breath of the refreshing, chilled air before handing over some cash for a ticket to the nearest city centre, Healy, and boarded the train.

On the journey as we sped north through the barren countryside, I allowed myself to think of the supposed family that I had come from. I'd been with them for just three years when I was taken by the Volturi; by that time I probably looked like a ten or eleven year old child. I unconsciously fingered the tarnished chain, running my fingers delicately over the mysterious wolf charm that had been worn down by this same action over the years. I didn't know what the background for the charm was; although it had a deeply calming affect nonetheless.

I felt a sharp stab in my heart as my fingers flitted to the diamond pendant; I'd always associated it with my family; immortal, indestructible and iridescent like all vampires, but unique as they were said to have been connected by love rather than blood. I yearned for my past and present to reunite, a burning nostalgia that frequently took hold at the most inopportune moments. I didn't have to doubt whether or not my family had been good people - I knew it as well as I knew my right hand. In a life devoid of faith in most anything, other than the love for my daughter, it was the one thing that kept me alive enough to appreciate the next sun rise.

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An automated voice recording pulled me from my silent reverie, announcing our arrival in Healy. I pulled my satchel off the floor and stood up, covering myself with my thick, hooded down coat even though I really didn't need the extra heat. I hopped off the carriage, scanned my ticket in the reader and walked briskly through the terminal avoiding the eyes of the few dozen people still in the building, waiting to get home. I was so practiced at blending in that it was like an instinct, but still I could just _feel_ the stares, a shiver down my back as I exited and made my way to the small cab rank.

"Well hello there lovely lady," the cad driver leered at me and I blushed, staring at my boot-covered feet.

"South McKinley, please sir," I looked up and he gasped quietly, as did many humans with whom I interacted. I could gently lure them in much more effectively than a full vampire; my human half tended to mitigate the unconscious fear that most vampires instilled in their victims.

"A-anything for you sugar," he gave me a seedy grin and I growled lowly, turning off the natural charm factor. His smile faltered immediately and his hairs stood up; now sensing the apparent danger. I held out a wad of cash and he scrunched his nose. "I don't take cash lady, it's dangerous you know. Them officials are monitorin' that shit. I won't do it," he frowned, making a move to get back in the ghastly yellow vehicle.

I shot my hand out and grabbed him by the wrist. _PLEASE_ "Please," I raised my eyebrow, willing him to challenge my gift. I doubled the amount and closed his hand around the money and made a move to hop in, knowing that he would now cooperate. "Just like fucking magic," I muttered, shaking my head as he did the same and hopped in to take me to the National Park.

The ride was short and stuffy, but soon I found myself standing outside the Hikers Mountain Lodge; a quaint little log cabin miniature town, set amongst thick vegetation and a healthy blanket of snow. I allowed myself a restrained sort of grin. One of the only smiles to reach my eyes in many months; I felt like this place was going to be one of the keys to my detoxification from the life I had been not so much as living but just barely existing in.

I pulled out the photograph of Leida and stroked it softly. "I'm going to find you baby girl. I'm going to find _me_," I cooed, the familiar itch of separation making itself known. Stuffing the photo back into my bag, I entered the main reception and booked a room.

"Here, take off that hood girl! It's like a hundred degrees in here!" chuckled Abigail, the lodger. I sighed and shrugged off my coat, folding it neatly under my arm and raising my head to meet her gaze. "Well there Miss Rebecca! Aren't you just the most gorgeous thing I've seen all year!" she reached out to stroke my cheek before I could protest.

"I don't deserve your flattery Abigail," I swatted away her hand and indulged in a bit of self-loathing.

"Don't you ever say such ridiculous things," she chided, "and you just call me Mama Abi or I'll have you darn thrown out of here alright?" she smiled and pulled me into a warm hug; something that I hadn't experienced in a long time.

"Okay, okay," I acquiesced, untangling myself from her gentle arms. I feared that she'd be tainted by my murky past simply by touching me; I didn't deserve her appreciation.

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**Hope that I satisfied this time around :) More to come, including an important meeting in the forest. Heheheheee.**


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